In an ideal world, when you first encounter this page on our website you’re seeing it in late December… the Christmas Tree is still standing, the fruitcake is still relatively fresh, the cards are still on the table. And you’re thinking about the new year. What problems or challenges are you going to encounter? What decisions need to be made? What bills are you going to have to meet?
But the beginning of the year is also a good time to think about the direction of our lives. Are we purposely moving closer to Christ? Are developing habits that open us up the the Holy Spirit’s leading? Or are we drifting along with no clear priority, just meeting the challenges as they come up?
Habits. One good habit to get into is to read the Bible every day. Not simply to “get through the whole thing” and to say that you know the Bible. But to put yourself into a position every day where God can meet with you. To open your mind and heart to the “gentle nudges” that draw you closer to God.
Starting this habit at the beginning of the year is great. But starting it at all is the important thing.
So, whether today is late December, or mid-January, or even late August, NOW is always a good time to get into the daily habit of opening yourself to God’s Word.
This page provides several plans for daily reading the Bible. Unlike the plans in the back of most Bibles which seek to take you through the entire Bible in the year, these plans are only one chapter a day. Instead of forcing yourself to stick to a plan by reading 3-4 chapters of “begats” and “turtledoves,” these plans invite you to slow down and ponder on a single chapter. Drop the idea of checking off pages every day and trying to read through the whole Bible. Spend some time in the Word and see if the Bible will go through you.
Welcome to 2024!!!
The Chapter-a-Day Reading plans for 2024 are ready to go! Pick out a plan, print it out, and get set for a daily taste of God’s Word throughout 2024.
FAQs
It’s July! Am I too Late???
No! It’s never too late to start a good habit. “New Year’s Resolutions” are simply good habits that you get into at the beginning of the year. If there are a pile of calendar pages between today’s date and January 1, so what? Maybe it’s cool to start on January 1, but starting in October is almost as good.
Why only one Chapter a Day???
Whether you start on January 1 or December 1, there are three things you need to do in order to get into the habit of daily reading God’s Word:
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- Don’t get hung up on the idea that you need to read through the entire Bible in one year!
- Pick a plan that works for you.
- Open the Bible and read it!
This page offers six different daily Bible reading plans. Pick the one that works best for you, print it out, use the pages like bookmarks and put them in your Bible.
The plans offer several options. Pray on it. Think about your recent exposure to the Bible. Where you start out is up to you and God’s leading. Pick a plan. Stick with it this year, and then try a different one next year.
If you prefer to use an online Bible, this button will take you there: Bible Gateway
How much of the Bible can you cover with one chapter a day???
There are 260 chapters in the New Testament. So if you go for the New Testament plan, you’ll read the entire New Testament in one year. The plan provides two days for some of the longer chapters, so slow down and let them go through you.
The Old Testament consists of 929 chapters. So, you won’t get through the entire Old Testament by reading a chapter a day. There is some “cherry picking” going on in the Old Testament plans. All of God’s word is important, but the plans skip over some of the “begats and cubits” to make it easier to form your reading habit.
Which plan should I start with?
If you’ve never read the Bible, it probably makes sense to start at the beginning- Genesis. Try the Old Testament plan this year and then move on to the New Testament next year. Explore areas in the Bible where you haven’t been before; or areas where you haven’t been in a long time.
If you’ve read one of these plans before, pick a different one. Rotate through each plan year by year.
Instructions
Pick the plan you want to follow this year and then download it using the associated button. The plan is a PDF file, and it will open in a new browser tab. Use your browser’s Print function to print out the plan.
All of the plans consist of 11 pages. The lists on each page are sized so that they can be cut out of each sheet and fit into a typically sized Bible. In other words, you can use the list as a bookmark and keep it in your Bible. If you have a printer that can print on both sides of the sheet, print out the lists double sided (and you’ll save some paper).
A check box is provided so you can keep track of what you have read.
Chapter-a-Day Bible Reading Plans
Plans are provided for the Old Testament and for the New Testament. Since there are more Old Testament chapters than days in a year, a variety of Old Testament plans are offered. Pick a plan for this year, click the button, then print the plan out.
Old Testament Plans…
Plan “OTa”: The “original” Old Testament plan…
The plan skips over the “begat” and “cubit” parts that usually drive a good resolution to a screeching halt. It just hits the highlights in books like Exodus, Numbers and Leviticus. Not that the other parts aren’t important! But, the goal is to develop a habit and “let the Bible go through you.” It also brushes over sections of the prophecies.
The plan is generally presented in Chronological order (using whatever information we have). It weaves some of the prophetic books in with the history books (1-2 Kings & 1-2 Chronicles) so you can read them in the historical setting. It also skips over parts that seem to duplicate themselves (for example, 1-2 Kings and 1-2 Chronicles). It follows Kings to pick up the history of the Northern Kingdom, and then switches over to Chronicles after the Northern exile.
Here’s the link to download the Old Testament Plan: Old Testament Plan
Plan “OTb”: Old Testament Worship…
The previous OT plan skips a lot of chapters, especially the Psalms. This “make up” plan tries to capture chapters you’d miss even if you read all of the other OT plans. It still skips over the “begat” and “cubit” parts; so rest assured that this plan is “readable” and it will keep you engaged with Word for the entire year. It also weaves the Psalms and minor prophets along with the historical context presented in the other books.
This plan includes Psalm 119. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible (it’s essentially its own book). Psalm 119 consists of 21 sections (corresponding to each letter of the Hebrew alphabet), and each section consists of 8 verses. The plan reserves 11 days for reading Psalm 119. The idea is to read two sections (16 verses) on each of these days.
This plan is a bit different than the others; instead of studying the history, or theology, or personalities, it invites you to worship. Through the Psalms and other poetic passages, slow down, ponder, and pray.
Here’s the link to download the “Old Testament Plan B” Plan: Old Testament Worship Plan
Plan “OTc”: Old Testament Prophets…
Even if you read the other Old Testament plans, you’d still be missing a bunch of chapters. This plan attempts to fill in some of the missing chapters. It includes some (some!) chapters from Exodus and Leviticus that talk about the tabernacle and law. But it breaks this material up by inserting relevant chapters from the Gospels. This plan also includes the “Major Prophets”. Other plans do cover the “Minor Prophets,” but this plan includes all of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, and Ezekiel. Sections from 1-2 Kings and 1-2 Chronicles are inserted where needed to give the historical context. This plan also includes some missing Psalms and parts of Job’s exchanges with his “friends” in the book of Job.
Here’s the link to download the “Old Testament Plan C” Plan: Old Testament Prophets Plan
Plan “OT People”: Old Testament People…
Instead of trying to cover all of the history and events that make up the Old Testament, this plan focuses on the lives of the people who make up the Old Testament story. It will take you to various people and personalities in the hope that we can learn from their faith experiences. It also covers some of the chapters that were not included in the “original” Old Testament plan.
Here’s the link to download the “Old Testament People” Plan: Old Testament People Plan
New Testament Plans…
With the New Testament, there are more days in a year than chapters, so you can read through the entire New Testament in one year (by reading one chapter a day). But if you want to slow down a bit and work in a few Old Testament chapters too, a “NT Light” plan is also provided.
Plan “NT”: The “original” New Testament plan…
The New Testament is generally divided into the Gospels, Acts, Paul’s letters to the churches, Paul’s letters to individuals, letters written by people other than Paul, and then Revelation.
This New Testament plan will take you through the entire New Testament in one year. And, it pretty much follows the order established by the traditional cannon. There are a few exceptions though…
- Instead of reading all four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) in succession at the beginning of the year, the Gospels are “spread out” so that the accounts of Jesus’ life and teachings will always be fresh in your mind.
- The books of Romans and Hebrews (which can get a bit heavy in theology) are taken from their “normal” locations in an attempt to keep it “light.”
And, as noted above, one of the “problems” of reading the New Testament using a “chapter a day” format is that there are more days in the year than chapters in the New Testament. So- taking it slow- most chapters are allotted two days. Read half of it one day and finish it up the next. Or, read it through one day, then look up the devotionals and ponder what you read. Take a second look at the chapter the next day. Remember; it’s now how many times or how fast you go through the Bible. It’s all about opening yourself up to God’s Word and letting it go through you.
Here’s the link to download the New Testament Plan: New Testament Plan
Plan “NtOt”: New Testament “Light”…
The New Testament plan takes you through the entire New Testament. But, it starts out with Romans and includes some heavy stuff along the way. Hitting Romans chapter 1 on New Year’s Day might not be the best way for many of us to get us started in our Bible Reading habit. So, another alternative is available. This plan starts out with highlights from Genesis and other Old Testament passages and then eases you into Matthew. Paul’s letters are placed in chronological order between the relevant chapters in Acts. “Heavier” books such as Hebrews and Romans are interspersed with chapters from other books to help put the theological discourses in perspective. The middle part of Revelation is skipped over. All of scripture is important, and this plan won’t take you through the entire New Testament. But, any time you open God’s Word it can “go through you.”
Here’s the link to download the “New Testament Light” Plan: New Testament Light Plan
Ponder the Word
Included on the list are references to daily devotionals which feature a verse from the day’s chapter. The list shows the date(s) of these devotionals where the chapter is discussed. Look up the devotional article (links below) and dig deeper into the passage you just read. References to two popular devotionals are provided (if you don’t have these books, you can access the articles online):
- Charles Spurgeon’s “Morning and Evening” devotional includes two devotional articles (featuring two different verses) for each day.
Click Here to open the “Morning and Evening” archive. Scroll down and click on the date cited in the reading plan list. - Oswald Chamber’s “My Utmost for His Highest” devotional is also cited in the reading plan.
Click Here to visit the Oswald Chamber’s website. To find the desired article, click on the date (which is right above the title of today’s article). Use the arrows on the calendar to navigate to the date shown in the reading plan.
Share the Word
What has God shown you as you’ve read the Bible? We all learn from each other, and this website page is a great way to exchange insights.
As we go through the year, scroll down to the “Leave a Comment” form at the bottom of this page to share how the Bible has gone through you this year.
The name can be anything you want (use your first name or nickname), and the email address won’t be published (only the webmaster will see it, and it won’t be used unless there is a question about your comment).
All comments are “moderated”; we reserve the right to reject any comments if we feel that they don’t positively enhance the discussion.
2 Comments
Join the conversation and post a comment.
I googled free Lenten devotional Methodist and came across your website. You have such great material, and I will visit it often Thank you! I attend FUMC Tallasse in Tallassee, Alabama.
Wow- thank you so much for your comments. I hope the devotionals, Bible Reading plans, and other resources on our site continue to be a blessing. Please tell your friends in Tallassee that you have brothers and sisters in Christ from Pitman NJ who are praying for you. God bless!